The park’s visitor center, built in 1975, will receive a significant facelift.

“It will be a two-part project, to change how drivers and pedestrians approach the visitor center, and to expand and remodel the center,” said Hammond, a well-traveled U.S. National Park Service veteran who last served as superintendent at Little Bighorn Battlefield in Montana.

The Superfund site within Valley Forge, which was an asbestos plant dumping ground from the late-1800s to the 1970s, will be rehabilitated. After being blocked off for 20 years, the 115 acres will eventually be suitable for public use.

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“After many years of litigating and arguing about costs, we have awarded a contract to remediate the site,” Hammond said. “So starting in the spring, they will be digging up the dirt and sending it to a disposal site. The goal is to reopen the area within two years.”

Hammond said if all goes according to plan, the contract for a new pedestrian bridge crossing the Schuykill River will be awarded.

“The bridge would connect the north and south sides of the park, which is needed for foot traffic and emergency vehicles,” Hammond said. “It will also provide a better trail connection.”

Other projects will include the rehab of the Muhlenberg Brigade portion of the park; the clearing and eventual building of a new parking lot off of Yellow Springs Road; and the preservation of numerous structures throughout the park.

Hammond also discussed recent and ongoing projects, including the park’s deer management plan. Since its implementation two years ago, the deer population has gone from seven times the ideal level to double the desired amount.

“They had decimated the natural resources at the park. There was no regeneration of plants and trees,” Hammond said. “Nobody likes doing it, especially me, and if and when there is an effective contraceptive that can be delivered, that’s the ideal alternative.

“I have heard over and over again that people have noticed a difference, and the number of deer-vehicle collisions has dropped in half, which was an unintended consequence of that action.”

While this year’s numbers are still being compiled, Valley Forge had an estimated 1.3 million visitors in 2011. The park has an annual operating budget of $6.2 million, which has remained steady despite federal budgetary concerns. The park has 55 year-round personnel, and 2,900 volunteers who log 54,000 donated hours per year, the equivalent of 26 full-time positions.